Elliott Lee runs the show as Wrexham beat Grimsby at a canter: GOAL grades every Red Dragons game in the 2023-24 season

Wrexham were excellent against Grimsby, turning in one of their most accomplished performances of the season to record a 3-0 win.

Ollie Palmer scored the opening goal, getting on the end of a superbly judged Elliott Lee cross and heading into the back of the net. And similarly effective wing-play from James McClean allowed Will Boyle to score the second header of the game, and give Wrexham a 2-0 lead going into half-time.

Wrexham continued to create chances throughout the second half, as both Paul Mullin and Sam Dalby forced excellent saves from goalkeeper Jake Eastwood. Lee actually scored the third, having been the provider for the first, as he got on the end of a Dalby cross and dispatched an effort into the back of the net.

As comfortable as it gets for Phil Parkinson's men. Grade: A

It was a scrappy affair from beginning to end, but the Red Dragons managed to get the better of it as Elliott Lee fired in a late winner as they beat Doncaster 2-1 on Saturday.

Goal scoring opportunities were few and far between throughout the first half, but if anyone deserved the lead at the break, it was the home team.

And the style of the goal was typical of the match, as Luke Young's shot took a deflection, bounced off the post and ended up being knocked into the net by goalkeeper Ian Lawlor.

It did not take long for the visitors to pull level, as Mo Faal got on the end of a cross from Joe Ironside and headed beyond Mark Howard.

The game saw the return of star striker Paul Mullin, who came off the bench at the hour mark to make his first appearance of the season, having recovered from a punctured lung sustained in pre-season.

It was Lee who popped up to fire in the vital goal that secured all three points for the Welsh team - with help from a deflection - to ensure Wrexham finished the game with 12 points from seven matches. Grade: B.

The Red Dragons came out on top in this match, but the kids from Newcastle did not make it easy - and nor did Wrexham themselves.

With multiple opportunities throughout the contest to double their lead and even make it three or possibly four, they somehow held on to a narrow 1-0 victory in front of a record-crowd for a home EFL Trophy match.

A lack of clinical finishing haunted them throughout, but lucky for Phil Parkinson's side, Sam Dalby briefly had his shooting boots on and saw them through with his 13th-minute goal.

Making his club debut and earning a clean sheet on the night, goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo - who has joined on loan from Arsenal - looked ready and prepared to take the spot of the recently retired Ben Foster. Fellow deadline-day arrival George Evans locked-up the centre of the pitch as well, with both new boys bright spots on the night.

Ultimately, though, it was an unconvincing performance. Wrexham were far too casual in the attack and lazy finishing seemed to take over the mind of every forward after the early goal.

With 17 shots taken but only four hitting the target, the Red Dragons have some thinking - and shooting practice - to do before their next group-stage match. We're sounding like a broken record, but they really need Paul Mullin back as soon as possible. Grade:C+

While this ended in an away win for Wrexham, their trip to Tranmere told us more about their current flaws than their strengths.

Wrexham had some real opportunities in the first half, with two excellent deliveries from Ryan Barnett going begging, and some passages of play carving the home side open, though they were unable to capitalise, yet again pointing towards a lack of a cutting edge.

Of course, Phil Parkinson's men are always going to find it difficult without their talisman Paul Mullin, given that back-up striker Sam Dalby has scored just eight goals for the club in his career.

In the first half, the newly-promoted side had 11 shots on goal, but only three of them were on target, emphasising their bluntness going forward.

However, in the second half, they found a way through, as Aaron Hayden met a Thomas O'Connor corner with his head and gave Wrexham all three points.

Ultimately, a win is a win, but this was a display that was dominant from Parkinson's men, and they had to rely on a header from a set-piece to get over the line.

It is painfully obvious that the club desperately need Mullin back; had he been on the pitch, one has to think this would have been a far more comfortable victory. Grade: C+

When it's not your night, it's not your night. The tone was set for a massively frustrating evening for Wrexham when Bradford City were awarded a soft penalty inside three minutes. Tyler Smith made no mistake from the spot, dealing an early blow to the Red Dragons' hopes of another famous cup run.

To their credit, Phil Parkinson's side rallied impressively in the first half, but were left ruing near misses and a lack of composure. Eventually, summer arrival Will Boyle rose like a salmon to equalise late on and send the Carabao Cup tie to penalties. However, unlike against Wigan Athletic in the previous round, Mark Howard could not produce any heroics and Wrexham exited the competition.

The statistics skewed heavily in Wrexham's favour and on another day they would be the ones dreaming of a glamourous draw against a Premier League giant. Instead, this one has to be marked up as a lesson in taking your chances. Wrexham must rediscover their killer edge if they are to get their season back on track and Parkinson will be counting down the days until Paul Mullin is back leading the line. Grade: C

Well, it was never going to be as dramatic as last week!...

Elliot Lee gave the Welsh side the lead from the penalty spot after just 11 minutes, as Ollie Palmer was fouled in the box.

While there was a degree of comfort to Wrexham's performance in the first half, they were pegged back five minutes after the restart. Emile Acquah curled a lovely effort into the top corner for Barrow, and the visitors found it much more difficult in the second half. Goalkeeper Mark Howard - starting following the shock retirement of Ben Foster - was called into action repeatedly and made some excellent saves to keep Phil Parkinson's side in the game.

It again goes to show that League Two is going to take some adjusting to; the away side may have hoped to record their second victory of the season here, but ultimately they were left thanking their goalkeeper that they got out of the SO Legal Stadium with a point. Grade: C

What on earth have we just witnessed?! Yes, Wrexham's defending was dreadful, and Ben Foster won't have conceded that many goals in a game too often in his professional career, but the character and resilience shown by Parkinson's side to battle back when the game looked dead and buried at half-time was nothing short of miraculous.

So let's address that dismal first half; Swindon were absolutely cruising - 4-1 up at the interval with the defending on show non-existent, and Foster will no doubt be annoyed with himself to have not been able to keep at least two of those goals out. It really did look over but whatever Parkinson said at half-time worked wonders.

Four goals in the second half - without Paul Mullin, remember - with two of them coming in an absolutely bonkers period of stoppage time, turned a nightmare defeat into a point. Elliot Lee was the hero in the 96th minute as he showed his predatory instincts to pounce on a rebounded free-kick and send the SToK Racecourse crowd wild.

Yes, Wrexham are going to have to vastly improve at the back - and that's putting it lightly - but it's still very early days in a long and gruelling League Two season, so we shouldn't read too much into their 15th-place league position for now.

A miraculous comeback and a truly unforgettable day for the home support. Grade: B+

Phil Parkinson's side put in a brilliant performance as they earned their first three points of the 2023-24 League Two campaign against Walsall. The Red Dragons scored twice within the opening 20 minutes, including a brilliant volley from Ollie Palmer which doubled their lead. Two second-half goals added on top proved to be enough to get Wrexham over the line.

The opener came from defensive debutant Will Boyle, who headed home off a brilliant cross from Luke Young. The 30-year-old midfielder cut back inside on his left foot and sent a looping ball across the box that Boyle nodded over the goalkeeper, before Palmer made it 2-0 in the 21st minute.

After Walsall pulled one back through Chris Hussey, Jake Bickerstaff added a third 11 minutes into the second half from a Jacob Mendy assist, and Elliot Lee put the cherry on top with Wrexham's fourth goal in the 85th minute. Lee launched a low-driven shot into the bottom-left corner of the net and celebrated promptly as it ensured all three points for his side, despite Anthony Forde's stoppage-time own goal.

And so after a disappointing start to the League Two campaign with an opening day loss to MK Dons and then a 1-1 draw against AFC Wimbledon, the Red Dragons will be flying high off their brilliant showing on Tuesday.

Grade: B+

It proved to be late agony for Wrexham as the first three points of the 2023-24 season slipped from their grasp at AFC Wimbledon, with Elliot Lee's deflected first-half strike cancelled out by a late James Tilley penalty.

After the MK Dons loss in the opener, a first league win of the season would've been more than welcome, and everything had looked to be going according to plan.

Wrexham had led for most of the game, with Jacob Mendy deserving a huge amount of credit for his part in the goal - the Gambia international racing past a couple of challenges before getting to the byline and cutting the ball back for Lee, whose first-time shot took a hefty deflection before bouncing into the net.

The hosts then missed a penalty in the 65th minute - Ben Foster heroically diving low to his right to keep out Ali Al-Hamadi's effort - but unfortunately for Wrexham, Tilley wouldn't be denied in the final 10 minutes of the game, slotting home to earn a point for his side.

It's further proof that life in League Two isn't going to be easy but there were still positives to take away from the Cherry Red Records Stadium and hopefully Paul Mullin isn't too far off from a return to bolster the attack. Grade: C

Where's Paul Mullin when you need him?! Wrexham's first taste of League Cup action for some 15 years saw them stun League One side Wigan, and it should really have been done and dusted before the tie went to a penalty shootout.

Star striker Mullin, who is recovering from a punctured lung suffered in the pre-season clash with Manchester United, shouldn't be too far from a return now and without him, the hosts failed to find the net in normal time despite having a total of 20 shots.

It didn't matter in the end, though, as Parkinson's side held their nerve - scoring all four of their spot-kicks - to book their place in round two, where they could well be paired with Premier League opposition. A job well done. Grade: B+

Not the start Wrexham were looking for. Not by a long shot. After the highs of the record-breaking 2022-23 season, the Red Dragons were brought crashing back down to earth by MK Dons in their League Two opener.

The visitors were ruthless in front of goal and it proved to be a defensive shambles for Parkinson's men, with Ben Foster conceding five goals from only six shots on target. Vast improvement is going to be needed, and especially at home, with Wrexham having only dropped two points at the Racecourse Ground all last season. Grade: E